Chaosium Digest Volume 3, Number 9 Date: Sunday, August 22, 1993 Number: 2 of 3 Contents: 1930s Anthropology (Guy Bock) CALL OF CTHULHU 1930s Archaeology (Guy Bock) CALL OF CTHULHU 1930s Astronomy (Guy Bock) CALL OF CTHULHU 1930s Chemistry (Guy Bock) CALL OF CTHULHU Editor's Note: The articles in this Digest are all taken from the Mythos Delvers Chronicles (1989-1991), a digest of Lovecraftia run by Guy Bock. Together with the article on books which was in V2.7, they reflect the majority of the Call of Cthulhu discussion from the Mythos Delvers list. Archives of the old list, which primarily discussed Lovecraft's earlier works, are available for FTP on soda.berkeley.edu under the directory: /pub/chaosium/cthulhu/mythos-delvers. Shannon -------------------- From: Guy Bock Subject: 1930s Anthropology System: Call of Cthulhu Inspired by the forensics section in the Cthulhu Now suplement, I decided to do the same with each of the CoC player character skills. I wanted to pay particular attention to the science skills with respect to what was considered the 'cutting edge' in the '30s. The following are game master suggestions for using CoC skills. ANTHROPOLOGY - This skill covers several sub-branches of human sciences, but the field of knowledge which the CoC rulebook describes is known as ethnology. My 1937 Compton's Illustrated Encyclopedia states: "This field deals with the physical differences between the white and black races, between the American Indian and the Chinaman. It compares the skeletons and skulls of prehistoric men with those of modern types. It deals also with the customs and religions of various tribes and peoples, their arts and languages - all with a view to finding out how the races differ and how they developed." It is anthropologists who may suddenly recall tales of devil-worshiping eskimos or the strange ancestor worship of the Ponape Islanders. Ethnologists coming face to face with a Mytos horror that is represented in the legendry of a familiar culture should make an anthropology roll. If succesful, extra SAN will be lost due to the ethnologist's increased understanding of the Thing. The 1930s showed great improvements in anthropology. Previously, many anthropologist were engaged with collecting 'evidence' that allowed them to create classification systems of different cultures. These systems were of dubious scientific value and tended to protray white anglo-saxons as the pinacle of human development. Sadistic GMs may saddle his players with such an 'expert' when they are desperate for anthropological information. 1930 Anthropology Bibliography (ie books with weird or sinister sounding title to impress your players with) _Strange Peoples_ by Frederick Starr (pub. 1901) _Human Origins_ (2 vol.) by G.G. MacCurdy (pub. 1924) _Races of Man_ by J.V. Nash (pub. 1931) Leading anthropologists alive in 1930s Frazer, Sir James George (b. 1854) Author of the _Golden Bough_ Hrdlicka, Ales (b. 1869) Curator U.S. National Museum Keith, Sir Arthur (b. 1866) Expert on resconstrution of prehistoric human remains Guy -------------------- From: Guy Bock Subject: 1930s Anthropology System: Call of Cthulhu ARCHAEOLOGY - As it is stated in the CoC rulebook, this skill is pathetically overestimated. An ancient artifact, in and of itself, is practically worthless as a source of information. It is the site of the archaeological dig and the relative placement of each artifact that provides the data that researchers use. It is only with time and labor-intensive efforts that even the most bare bones hypothesis may be formed. If forced to make an evaluation of a single artifact, an archaeologist might be able to place its source to one part of a *continent* and guess it's age within a few *thousand* years. And even this is only possible if the artifact is a commonly known type. A simple arrow head, a fragment of a clay pot or an ancient Grecian vase may be identified in this way. An object from a previously unknown culture could not be. Detecting frauds are even more difficult. For each method of dating an artifact there are a half dozen way of foiling proper analysis, even with modern detection equipment. Almost any archaeologist would refuse to authenticate an object removed from its original setting. 1930 Archaeology Bibliography _The Children of Mu_ by James Chruchward (pub. 1931) _The Lost Continent of Mu_ by James Churchill (pub. 1931) _Indigenous Races of the Earth_ by Josiah Nott (pub. 1868) _The Tebtunis Papyri_ edited by J. Gilbart Smyly (pub. 1902) Leading archealogists alive in 1930s James Henry Breasted (b. 1865 d. 1935) One of the greatest authorities on Egypt. Professor of Egyptology at the University of Chicago. Conducted archaeological expeditions in Egypt, Mesopotamia, Palestine, and Persia. Howard Carter (b. 1873) English Egyptologist. Discoverer of the tomb of Tutenkahamon. Sir Arthur John Evans (b. 1851) English archealogist. Noted for work on Aegean civilizations. Sir Flinders Petrie (b. 1852) English archealogist. Professor of Egyptology at University College, London. directed excavations in Egypt and Palestine. Guy -------------------- From: Guy Bock Subject: 1930s Astronomy System: Call of Cthulhu ASTRONOMY - This skill combines a high school level knowledge of the the night sky with a touch of astrophysics. Most of the information obtained by possession of this skill can be obtained from reading any star map or 'star wheel'. You can probably find one at a university bookstore. If nothing else, you can potocopy one out of the 'astronomy' article in an encyclopedia. If you don't want or need a paticularly accurate source, I've cobbled together a rough chart that should meet most adventure requirements. .................. .................. JAN Rigel JUNE Arcturus Aldebaran .................. .................. JULY Antares FEB Capella .................. Betelgeuse AUG Vega Sirius .................. Procyon SEPT Altair .................. Deneb MAR Pollux .................. .................. OCT Fomalhaut APRIL Regulus .................. .................. NOV MAY Spica .................. .................. DEC .................. (November and December are intentionally left blank) To determine what stars are visible at a given time, locate the month you've selected. The stars listed under that month and the two months above and below it will be visible. Stars three months above and below may be visible but will be very close to the horizon. Example: In June, Regulus, Spica, Arcturus, Antares, and Vega will be visible in the night sky. Pollux, Altair and Deneb might be. This chart assumes the viewer is in the northern hemisphere viewing the stars at 9:00pm. To adjust for diferent viewing times, shift down the list one month for every two hours after 9:00pm and up one month for every two hours before 9:00pm. Example: At 11:00pm on a night in June, Spica, Arcturus, Antares, Vega, Altair, and Deneb will be visible. Regulus and Formalhaut might be. Following is a summation of what is known of the Solar system as of 1937. In general, the distance from the Sun, length of year and diameter of each planet is known (and is accurate by modern standards). Little else is. I have tried to include only information that contradicts modern knowledge or information that is stated to be unknown. Any other information about the Solar system can be easily found in an encyclopedia. As far as I can tell, the scientific knowledge needed in determining the surface conditions of the other planets was available in the 30s. But, apparently this knowledge had not been applied to creating the needed technology to do so. If an adventure is set in the 1930s or earlier the 'determing surface conditions of other planets' part of the astronomy skill should be disallowed. Mercury - It is not known how long a Mercurian day lasts. It is possible that one side of the planet faces the Sun constantly. The temperature of Mercury is unknown, but it assumed to be very high. Venus - Conditions on Venus are very much like conditions on Earth. It is the same size and probably has similar atmosphere, but with more water vapor. Like Mercury, Venus may present one side to the Sun at all times. The day side would be a sun-baked desert, but the night side could be a steamy tropical land. The planet's cloud cover makes determining the length of its day difficult. The usual method of measuring the movement of land features as the planet rotates is useless with Venus. However, at least one observer has reported bright spots which may be the snow covered peaks of mountains. Mars - Mars is of interest because of its "canals", which are dark lines on the surface of the planet that change with the seasons. Some astronomers believe that this is evidence of life on Mars. The theory is that Mars is a desert planet and the inhabitants make use of the water frozen in Mars' ice caps by digging irrigation canals. Jupiter - Through a telescope, Jupiter is revealed to be a light and dark striped planet. The darker stripes are actually immense bands of clouds, each several thousand miles wide. The light bands are the actual surface of Jupiter. Dark spots appear from time to time, gradually turn red and then vanish. They are probably caused by clouds of gas or vapor thrown out from hot internal fires. This internal warmth would raise the surface temperature above comfortable levels despite Jupiter's great distance from the Sun. Jupiter has nine moons. Saturn - The gravity of Saturn is 2 2/3 times as strong as the gravity of Earth. It has nine or possibly ten moons. Very little is known about the other planets. Uranus has four moons; Neptune has one; Pluto may or may not have a moon. Pluto is also the only planet for which the diameter is unknown. Earth's Moon - The craters of the Moon are thought to be volcanic in origin. Astronomers cannot explain the light-colored material radiating like spokes from some of the larger craters. These rays may be lava flows, but scientists cannot account for the fact that these flows apparently run over mountains and valleys with no respect for gravity. Comets - The origins of comets are still mysterious, but some progress has been made in determining their composition. Spectroscopes have confirmed that comets are largely gaseous. In fact, the Earth has recently passed through the tail of two comets, once in 1861 and again in 1910, with no noticeable consequences. Only the nucleus of the comet is thought to consist of relatively solid material. One theory is that the nucleus is actually a swarm of meteors surrounded by a cloud of gas and dust. Despite old superstitions, there is no need to fear the approach of a comet. Even a collision with one of these celestial wanderers would not result in anything more serious than a spectacular shower of meteors. Meteors - There is little question that some meteors are bits or particles of comets that have disintegrated. One proof of the conection between comets and meteors is that swarms of meteors often travel in orbits which were once occupied by comets. [This theory has actually not been disproven yet, although it has never been proven either] Meteorites - Objects similar to meteors sometimes strike the Earth. These are known as meteorites or aerolites. It is possible that they are simply large meteors that did not brun up in the atmosphere, but the materials from which they are formed sugest a different origin. Scientists think they may be the remains of planets which were broken up by some celestial accident. Meteors are mostly of a stony character, though one in ten is largely composed of iron. This iron, combined with other metals, forms alloys different from any alloy found on Earth. No new element has been reliably documented as coming from a meteor. (Ok, I confess. I added the bit about 'reliably documented' because of "The Color from Outer Space". No new element had been found, period.) 1930 Astronomy Bibliography _Other Worlds Than This_ by Elena Fontany (pub 1930) _The Aryabhatiya of Aryabhata; an ancient Hindu work on astronomy_ by Aryabhata, edited by Walter Eugene Clark (pub 1930) _Marvels of the Universe_ by Henry Davenport Northrop (pub 1887) _Minerals of Earth and Sky_ by Fredrick William Foshag (pub 1929) _Ptolemy's Catalogue of Stars_ by Ptolemy, edited by Christian Heinrich Friedrich Peters (pub 1868) _The Star People_ by Gaylord Johnson (pub 1921) _Through Space and Time_ by Sir James Hopwood Jeans (pub 1934) 1930 Astronomers Annie Jump Cannon (b 1863) American astronomer associated with Harvard observatory. Discovered 300 variable stars, five new stars, and one spectroscopic binary. She compiled a bibliography of variable stars and a catalog of 225,000 stellar objects. She was the most eminent woman astronomer of her time. Sir Arthur Stanley Eddington (b 1882) British professor of astronomy at Cambridge University. Noted for researches on the motions of stars, stellar evolution, and relativity. George Ellery Hale (b 1868) American astronomer. Made special study of spectroscopy, invented spectroheliograph, and directed Mount Wilson observatory. -------------------- From: Guy Bock Subject: 1930s Chemistry System: Call of Cthulhu *DISCLAIMER* I have no great knowledge of chemistry. The following information is selected for being out of date and streamlined for game purposes. Anyone using this information to make REAL explosives, poison, etc. is probably going to get a nasty suprise. Remember what the typical penalties are in CoC for meddling with things you don't undestand. CHEMISTRY - This is a very wide area to cover, but the rulebook seems to focus on four main areas: 1) Blowing things up 2) Disolving things 3) Poisoning things 4) Analyzing what's left after you've done 1,2, and 3 First, a few notes on Chemistry in the 1930s. There are a few differences in the periodic table. Sulfur is spelled 'Sulphur'; Niobium (No. 41) is known as Columbium; Astatine (No. 85) is known as Eka-Iodine; Francium (No. 87) is known as Eka-Cesium; Protactinium (No. 91) is known as Eka-Tantalum; All elemement from No. 93 on up are unknown. Chemists in the 30s did not know about neutrons. In modern chemistry it is known that each element has a neutron for each proton it possesses. A neutron has the same mass as a proton, but carries no charge. To make up for what scientist saw as a discrepancy in weight, they doubled the number of protons that the element contained, added yet one more, and then included electrons *as part of the nucleus* to make the charge come out properly. Electrons that orbited the nucleus were called 'planetary' electrons to distinguish them from the electons that were part of the nucleus. Elements of intrest to the player chemist Hydrogen Burns with a very hot flame. Lithium When thrown in water, liberates hydrogen which ignites from the heat produced by the reaction. Nitrogen Used in making explosives Fluorine Very chemically active element.* Sodium Very chemically active element.* Explodes on contact with water. Sulphur Important reagent in analytical chemistry. Chlorine Very chemically active element.* Forms a poisonous gas. Potassium Reacts with water much like Lithium. Bromine Very chemically active element.* Gives off poisonous vapor. Mercury Forms violent poison with Chlorine. Radium Radioactive Actinium Radioactive Thorium Slightly radioactive. Eka-Tantalum Radioactive Uranium Very radioactive. * i.e. reacts violently in chemical reactions. Explosives are divided into two catagories: rapid burning and detonating. Rapid buring substances are substances in which a flame spreads quickly. These substances are used for accelerating projectiles. Gunpowder is an example. Detonating substances are substances in which a violent chemical reaction takes place throughout the mass. Nitroglycerin is a common example. Any substance that can be made to burn quickly can be made to explode. Coal gas, hydrogen, automobile gas, alcohol, ether, turpentine or any vapor can explode when mixed with the right porportions of oxygen. Most manufactured explosives contain the element oxygen in their chemical makeup to provide the right porportion, independent of the environment they are used in. The most common explosive players will come into contact with will be dynamite. The main component of dynamite, nitroglycerin, was discovered in 1846 by an Italian scientist. It is made by treating glycerin with a mix of nitric and sulphuric acids. It proved too unstable for blasting purposes untill Alfred Nobell finished his experiments with the substance in 1866. Dynamite is a mixture of some absorbent substance impregnated with liquid nitroglycerin. Wood pulp, sawdust, charcoal, and plaster of paris have been used for making dynamite. Ordinary dynamite is usually made in the form of eight inch long sticks, two inches in diameter. They are covered with brown paper wrappers coated with paraffin to keep out moisture. A small quanity of dynamite, set on fire, will burn normally, but if the burning dynamite is subjected to pressure or vibration, it will explode. Dynamite is usually set off with a detonator or blasting cap. For game purposes, if a chemist can obtain nitric acid and some absorbent material that burns easily, he has enough to construct an explosive. I don't have the space or intrest to explain how acids work. Here's a list of common 1930s acids: Benzoic a perservative Carbolic an antiseptic Carbonic seltzer water Chromic used in dyes Hydrochloric a strong solvent Hydrocyanic a poison Nitric a strong solvent, used in explosives Salicylic an antiseptic Sulphuric a strong solvent Tartaric used in dyes Poisons are classed by the way they react on the human body. 1) Corrosive Poisons - act by 'burning' the skin Examples: bichloride of mercury, carbonic acid, hydrocloric acid, nitric acid, oxalix acid, suplhuric acid 2) Irritant Poisons - act by causing inflamation. Usually react slowly. Examples: Arsenic compounds, Copper compounds, Lead compounds, Phosphorus compounds, Zinc compounds 3) Nerve Poisons - act directly on the nerves. Small amounts can kill very quickly. Examples: aconitin, belladona, cocaine, cyanide compounds, heroin, hydrocyanic acid, opium, purussic acid, strychnine 4) Gas Poisons - act by irritating lungs or by interfering with blood oxygen. Examples: bromine, carbon monoxide, chlorine, suplhur fumes I tried to come up with a 'field kit' for chemists, a sort of portable chem lab for doing general analysis. I decided that any kit small enough to carry probably would not be specialized enough for the strange things the players would run into. Just give the players a ten kilo box to lug around. When they try to examine anything with it, tell them the tests give ambigious results (roll some dice, if you really want them to be paranoid) and then suggest they take it to a proper lab. 1930 Chemistry books _Chemische Briefe_ by freiherr Justus von Liebig (pub 1878) _Out of the Test Tube_ by Harry Nicholls Holmes (pub 1934) _Chemistry and its Mysteries_ by C.R. Gibson (pub 1920) 1930 Chemists Leo Hendrik Baekeland (b 1863) American chemist who developed a quick-acting photographic paper. James Bryant Conant (b 1893) American chemist born in Mass. Proffesor of organic chemistry 1922-33 at Harvard U. Irving Langmuir (b 1881) American chemist engaged in research for General Electric. Developed Lewis-Langmuir theory of atomic structure. Won Nobel Prize in 1932. Elmer Verner McCollum (b 1879) American biochemist. Authority on relation of diet to growth and disease. Proffesor U. of Wisconsin and John Hopkins U. Frederick Soddy (b 1877) English professor of inorganic and physical chemistry at Oxford. Explained nature of radioactive elements. Advanced theory of elements. Won Nobel Prize in 1921 Theodore Svedberg (b 1884) Professor of physical chemistry at U. of Uppsala. Won Nobel Prize in 1926. Directed research at U. of Wisconsin 1922-23. Svante August Arrhenius (1859 - 1927) Swedish chemist and physicist. Director Nobel Institute for Physical Chemistry. Nobel prize winer 1903. Advocate of theory that the energy of the world is self-renewing. Author of theory of surface conditions on Venus. Sir William Crookes (1832 - 1919) English Chemist and physicist. Studied electric discharges through rarefied gases. Interested in psychic phenomena. Wilhelm Ostwald (1853 - 1932) German scientist. Leader in modern physical chemistry. Won Nobel Prize in 1909. -------------------- The Chaosium Digest is a Discussion Forum for Chaosium Games which do not have another specific area for discussion. To submit an article, mail to: appel@erzo.berkeley.edu